Inspired by a certain discussion on how to deal with what is effectively, for most people, an obsession.
One of the things I look for in a game is breadth, and that’s not a thing that mobile games often do well. Sometimes it’s hard to assess breadth when you first join a game, as there are often a bajillion thing to keep you busy early on, in accordance with the nefariousexploiting human weakness and mental heath issues
What I like about breadth is this: it’s harder for any given player to dominate all aspects of the game. You know those MMOs where everything is pointed at one global PvP leaderboard? And since those players on that leaderboard were there when the game started, even the whales will never catch up? No breadth.
I’m moderately happy with E&P in this regard. I can’t tell you the last time I looked at the global Raid leaderboard, and I feel very little pressure from anywhere to place well on it. When an ally takes the time to make a run and places well, it’s fantastic, and we all send accolades, and then next week comes. And the thing about next week is will we win this war?, and will I place in this tournament?, and can I get top rewards from this event?, and often will my date notice if I take a minute to… wait, what’s that on her phone?. The requirements for each activity are a little different, and I love what Tournaments have done for us in this regard, and I’m looking forward to the next slightly different feature. In short, there are rewards for lots of different stuff, and it’s hard to cover them all well until you reach the endgame.
But here’s my deal: in terms of play, I get caught up trying to cover all those bases, even though I know I can’t. I want to participate in everything, and in the absence of a particular focus, perform badly in all of them. When other people come to me with this problem, I tell them to focus on one thing and make it their raison d’etre, but I’ll be damned if I can follow my own advice.
Well… that’s not entirely true. As I mentioned, I never look at the Raid leaderboard. I’ve had an all-Epic defence team set up for so long, you can’t even call it cup dropping anymore. &%$# it. Challenge Events? Place, get the tier completion loot. &%$# it. Raid Tournaments? I participate, because it’s cheap, but I haven’t elevated any Heroes specifically for that in months. &%$# it. PoV? I buy it every time, but that’s because it pretty much completes itself. I enjoy hunting ducks, and outside of that, if there’s something that requires some work from me… &%$# it. Sometimes I’ll even say it out loud to myself, “Ahhh, &%$# it!”.
TL;DR: I love that there are many so many things to do that it’s hard to accomlish them all at once. I hate that I can’t do everything at once.
So, here’s my question, and perhaps point of discussion: Do you have a thing you love/hate about E&P? And what do you do when you encounter the part you hate?